The Canisius men's basketball team scored 59 second-half points, led by 14 points from senior Malcolm McMillan and 16 points from junior Phil Valenti, to overcome a 14-point second-half deficit en route to a 98-89 win over Lehigh Monday night in the Koessler Athletic Center. The win improves the Golden Griffins to 1-1 on the season, while the Mountain Hawks, the preseason pick to the win the Patriot League, slipped to 0-2 in 2015-16.
McMillan followed is 33-point effort on Friday at Hofstra with 31 points after he went 9-for-17 from the field, 2-for-7 from 3-point land and 11-for-12 from the free-throw line to go with three rebounds, two assists and two steals in 38 minutes of action. Valenti posted his 19 points on the power of a career-high five made 3-pointers, and he was also good for five boards, two assists and a block. Senior forward Jamal Reynolds recorded his fifth career double-double effort in the win for the Blue and Gold after he was credited with 16 points and 13 rebounds, with 10 of which came off the offensive glass. For the game, Canisius shot 42.4 percent from the field and 81.6 percent from the charity stripe, while draining 11 3-point field goals for the second-straight game to start the season.
Lehigh had five players record double-figures in the loss, led by junior guard Austin Price, who scored a team-high 20 points. Senior forward Jesse Chuku was good for 19 points, while junior center Tim Kempton, the Patriot League Preseason Player of the Year, chipped in 17 points and seven boards. For the game, Lehigh shot 46.4 percent from the field and 48.1 percent from 3-point land, but the Griffs were able to turn 15 Lehigh turnovers into 24 points.
"I told our guys going back and forth we are going to win this game," Canisius head coach Jim Baron said. "That's the one thing I think this team has – more will than any team I have ever had. We play with a lot of intensity and a lot of grit. To be honest, this is the type of team I love to coach. They do it on heart, soul and grit to score all the dirty points."
After a traditional three-point play by Price with 13:07 left to play in regulation time, Lehigh led by 14 points at 62-48. From there, the Griffs used a 22-3 run over the game's next 3:49 to take a 70-65 lead, capped by a jumper by Valenti from just inside the paint. Canisius stretched its hold to as many as seven at 86-79 with 4:44 left to play, but Lehigh answered with a 10-3 run late to knot the game at 89-89 with 1:40 left on the clock. Valenti put the Griffs ahead for good with a trey from the top of the key with 1:11 left in regulation time, and Canisius scored the game's final six points in the last 38 ticks to earn the first win in 2015-16.
Redshirt-freshman Isaiah Gurley came off the bench and scored a career-high 13 points to go with six rebounds, two assists and a steal in 21 minutes while senior center Kevin Bleeker scored eight points while registering six rebounds. The 98 points for Canisius are the most for the team since the Griffs lost to VMI in the 2014 CIT first round game March 18, 2014, by a score of 111-100.
Canisius will continue its three-game homestand Saturday when the team plays host to Cornell in the Koessler Athletic Center. Game time is set for 3:15 p.m. The game can be seen live on ESPN3 and heard live on Timeless WECK 1230-AM and FM-102.9 and GoGriffs.com.
Game Notes: This was the third all-time meeting between the two schools, with Canisius now holding a 3-0 lead in the series… The 59 points in the second half are the most for the Griffs since Jan. 10, 1979 when Canisius scored 63 points in a 20-minute span against Maine… In five games played with the 30-second shot clock, (including three CIT games last March) Canisius is averaging 85.2 points per game… The Griffs have now hit 10-or more 3-point field goals in 34 games under Baron… Canisius improved to 15-9 all-time in home openers inside the Koessler Athletic Center… McMillan's 31-point effort gives him 64 total points this season, the best two-game start to a Canisius career since former Griff Larry Fogle scored a combined 76 points to start the 1973-74 campaign… Prior to the start of the game, Canisius held a moment of silence to honor Paul Ryan, father of sophomore Cassidy Ryan, who passed away last week, and for those affected by the tragedy in Paris last Friday.
